Q: Why? Why? Why?
A: Because we're adding some cool stuff. And we have to take the service and website offline in order to do it. We're not doing it to make you mad … really.
Q: What kind of cool stuff?
A: Secret cool stuff that we'll tell you about when we're back online October 18. Other stuff we'll be talking about later in the fall.
Q: Is this a Dashboard update?
A: Nope.
Q: So what's going to happen exactly? What's it going to look like for me?
A: For the first hour or two that Xbox.com and Xbox Live are down, you'll get error messages—when you hit Xbox.com you'll see a Server Not Available message, and if you try to connect to Xbox Live you'll get the "can't connect" message. Don't freak. It's not your account, your computer, your browser, or your ISP. It's us. After a couple hours you will see a "We're down for maintenance" page on Xbox.com and a similar message on your Xbox console.
Q: Twenty-four hours? That's a whole day!
A: Yes it is. It is also 86,400 seconds. Too bad the Xbox Operations Center isn't on Jupiter. A day there is a little less than 10 hours!
Q: What the heck am I going to do for 24 hours if I can't troll the forums, pwn my rivals, download stuff on Marketplace, or video chat with my friends?
A: We're glad you asked. We hereby submit our Top Ten Things to Do on October 17 2006:
1. Boost your gamerscore. That's right, you can still earn achievements when you're offline. Your achievements will be uploaded to the Xbox Live service when it becomes available.
2. Bust out your big black buddy original Xbox. There are still awesome games coming out for Xbox®. In fact Destroy All Humans!™ 2 comes out on Tuesday October 17. That's pretty good timing.
3. Go shopping! We've had a boatload of great games and accessories release in the last few weeks. Check out LEGO® Star Wars II®: The Original Trilogy, Xbox Live Vision Camera, Test Drive® Unlimited, and lots of other great stuff. Make your local retailer very happy.
4. Nominate a friend for the Gamer Spotlight. TriXie's email will still be working, so drop her a line at
xlmail@microsoft.com and tell her who you think needs some attention on Xbox.com.
5. Listen to Xbox podcasts. Visit Gamertag Radio, XBLRadio, SquadXP, and Unscripted360, just to name a few. We'd suggest Major Nelson's 'cast, but we know everyone's already listened to all of his!
6. Study up on October 17 history. Here are some examples of momentous events that occurred on 10/17:
* 1931: Al Capone was convicted of income tax evasion.
* 1933: Physicist Albert Einstein arrived in the United States as a refugee from Nazi Germany.
* 1945: Col. Juan Peron staged a coup, becoming absolute ruler of Argentina.
* 1979: Mother Teresa was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
7. Birthdays! October 17 is also the birthday of Rita Hayworth, Evel Knievel, Mike Judge, Eminem, and Superman creator Jerry Siegel! It's a great opportunity to use Xbox 360™ for more than games—watch the Shawshank Redemption, Beavis and Butthead, and Superman: the Movie.
8. Holiday anyone? Hoist a glass in honor of The United Nations International Day for the Eradication of Poverty (just don't waste any) and Black Poetry Day in the U.S.
9. Talk to your significant other. Remember them? You last spoke about 11 months ago when you got your Xbox 360 console. Just don't say anything like, "Have you gained weight?"
10. Make your holiday wish list. HD DVD anyone? How about the Wireless Headset and Wireless Racing Wheel? How about that cool new Zune thingamagig and the cool accessories to go with it? Don't forget Gears of War®, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Double Agent™, and Viva Piñata!
XBL + Xbox.com down Oct. 17 
Blackjack Champion!
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